Awkward Arguments

Sigh, this is going to get way worse isn't it? Hope you have a good Tuesday!

Inflation is worldwide, and significantly worse in much of the world. To imagine that a single action, or set of actions, by a US President can correct it is folly.
ESPECIALLY when one of the main drivers is the reaction to the Russian war in Ukraine. Those calling this ‘Bidenflation’ are de facto claiming we should be supporting Russia’s war of conquest there. It is no surprise that this constitutes virtually the entire Republican voting base.

Likewise, the other main driver is the worldwide supply chain issue that predates the war. Again, the claim is that it’s Biden’s fault - as if the store shelves were not empty back in March 2020, a full ten months before Biden took office.

No, we are in a truly retarded era of American politics. It has become impossible to have rational conversation, and that impossibility is reflected in the inability of our politicians to be effective. We have descended into complete and utter dysfunctionality… and that’s within the Republican Party, before we even get as far as trying to do anything bipartisan. On the one hand you have Liz Cheney, who while I have no fondness for her policy goals at least thinks rationally. On the other hand you have virtually all her GOP opponents, who in the debate are citing, as facts, insanity such as 2000 Mules and the MyPillow guy!! That is, in the rare moments when they can even manage to put a complete sentence together.

When it’s going this way, there is virtually zero hope for rational conversation.

Dumb tariffs caused inflation - Turnip.
Covid complicated everything - China's punishment for putting dumb tariffs on them.

Senor Natural wrote: ↑

Tue Jul 05, 2022 5:46 pm

Dumb tariffs caused inflation

They're clearly not the whole cause, but they also certainly didn't help.

Much of the cause of inflation is not what you think it is, or that other people are saying it is. Most of it comes from increased fuel costs, which in turn is caused by a lack of refinery capacity. The US only has a limited number of refineries, and during the pandemic (which nobody really had any control over) many of them were shut down. It takes a long time to get a mothballed refinery back up and producing at optimal capacity. We're still feeling that now. There's actually plenty of oil around and the price per barrel is down a bunch from its high water mark, however there simply isn't enough refinery capacity to bring the cost of fuel at the pump down.

Note that this is not something that Trump caused, nor is it something that Biden can cure.

The alleged shooter, Robert Crimo III,, is the son of a mayoral candidate who on Twitter follows only one thing: the archive of Donald trump’s posts. Dear ol’ Dad is a fanatical supporter of the 2nd Amendment, says to regard it as if your life depends on it.

Tarmaque wrote: ↑

Tue Jul 05, 2022 7:54 pm

Senor Natural wrote: ↑

Tue Jul 05, 2022 5:46 pm

Dumb tariffs caused inflation

They're clearly not the whole cause, but they also certainly didn't help.

Much of the cause of inflation is not what you think it is, or that other people are saying it is. Most of it comes from increased fuel costs, which in turn is caused by a lack of refinery capacity. The US only has a limited number of refineries, and during the pandemic (which nobody really had any control over) many of them were shut down. It takes a long time to get a mothballed refinery back up and producing at optimal capacity. We're still feeling that now. There's actually plenty of oil around and the price per barrel is down a bunch from its high water mark, however there simply isn't enough refinery capacity to bring the cost of fuel at the pump down.

Note that this is not something that Trump caused, nor is it something that Biden can cure.

If your statement here is correct, one could almost state rationally that the decisions of private energy firms are directly impactful, sometimes in massive negative fashion, on national security.

Not that sane folks haven’t made the case many times over the years. But it bears repeating. A renewable-focused energy policy, had it been supported by the Right from the time of its inception (think Jimmy Carter’s solar cells on the roof of the White House, which oil supporter Reagan tore down as one of his very first acts upon taking office), would have blunted the market impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Local solar/wind production would blunt the impacts of major storms. Etc.

Tucker spent the first ten minutes of his show trying to pin this shooting on something, anything other than easy availability of guns. But it reads as a rebuke of virtually all rightwing talking points. Red flags? Galore. Yet the guy easily purchased five guns, including semiauto “assault weapons” and hi-cap handguns.

Given the Right frequently mentions “mental health” in the context of the gun discussion, their propensity for blocking nearly all background check legislation says they are not being honest on that point. What then of Tucker raising it as a primary issue with this shooter?